At 7 a.m. every Thursday, Horace Grace can be found at a Rotary Club meeting, where the mantra is “Service Above Self.”

Grace definitely has the mantra down. He was recently named Harker Heights Rotarian of the Year by 56 peers in the club, an honor he doesn’t take lightly.

“Rotary is important to me because it’s service above self,” he said. “I have been fortunate my whole life and I want to give back. You’re helping people by doing something that’s meaningful to them, and it makes their life better.”

Local Rotary clubs are part of Rotary International — a service organization bringing professionals in communities together for humanitarian service.

Grace said in addition to helping communities, local clubs contribute to the international goal of eradicating polio.

During the Heights club’s inaugural year, it raised enough funds for the international organization to rank third of the 64 clubs in District 5870, Grace said.

“That’s almost unheard of as a new club,” he said.

Last year, the Heights club ranked No. 1 in the district after raising nearly $40,000 in funds.

“That was a big thing,” Grace said. “I was the chair of the foundation responsible for doing that. That was probably one of the reasons I got to be Rotarian of the Year.”